New research has highlighted the need for further improvement in justice and support services to protect victim‑survivors from coercive control.
Coercive control is a pattern of abusive behaviour designed to exert power and dominance over another person or persons. It can involve physical and non-physical abuse and, over time, creates fear and takes away the person's freedom and independence.
Coercive control almost always underpins family and domestic violence. Understanding and identifying these dynamics is fundamental to an effective response to family and domestic violence.
A landmark agreement by the Standing Council of Attorneys-General in September 2023 endorsed National Principles to Address Coercive Control in Family and Domestic Violence which, for the first time, create a shared national understanding of coercive control.
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) study Technology-facilitated coercive control investigates the use of technology to facilitate controlling, monitoring, stalking, and emotionally abusive behaviours by intimate partners in domestic and family violence contexts.
Victim‑survivors and domestic and family violence frontline workers interviewed by the AIC reported significant gaps and the need for improvement in justice and support services.
One considerable gap is a lack of understanding of technology-facilitated coercive control among frontline workers, including police, and the community more broadly. This meant that victim‑survivors did not always recognise that what was happening to them was a form of violence.
Often, police were found to view reports by victim-survivors as isolated incidents, rather than as patterns of behaviour. Within domestic and family violence services there was found to be a lack of funding for specialist suppliers to conduct technology safety scans, leaving services to rely on local telecommunications stores or students to check devices.
In an additional paper, the AIC found an increase in reports of technology-facilitated coercive control during the COVID-19 pandemicexacerbated difficulties for victim-survivors in accessing support. Increased workload and working condition pressures on domestic and family violence workers and other support workers was also reported.
The Attorney-General's Department is undertaking work to strengthen responses to Family and Domestic Violence Services including a suite of resources to help people recognise coercive control and encourage victim-survivors to seek help.
In addition, the Government has invested in a $4.1 million training and education package to enhance the effectiveness of police responses to Family and Domestic Violence Services and training and education to increase awareness of coercive control and recognition of technology facilitated abuse.
If you or someone you know is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, domestic, family or sexual violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, chat online via www.1800RESPECT.org.au, or text 0458 737 732.
If you are concerned about your behaviour or use of violence, you can contact the Men's Referral Service on 1300 766 491 or visit http://www.ntv.org.au.
Feeling worried or no good? No shame, no judgement, safe place to yarn. Speak to a 13YARN Crisis Supporter, call 13 92 76. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The Australian Institute of Criminology
The AIC is Australia's national research and knowledge centre on crime and justice. The AIC seeks to promote justice and reduce crime by undertaking and communicating evidence-based research to inform policy and practice.
On 26 June 2024, the AIC released a new online dashboard to monitor intimate partner homicides involving female victims. The dashboard will be updated on a quarterly basis.
